CHAPTER 9. TORUL'S CUNNING PLAN AND THE SECOND KEY

“Well then, Torul, tell me about the Ant Power. Did our ancestors leave anything about it in the old manuscripts?” Warden Appo asked as they walked toward the fields.
“Yes, Warden. The ancient manuscripts describe a great deal, including the Ant Power. As it happens, during the war, every warrior received one pouch every two days.”
“Why so little? I thought the more of it you drank, the stronger you became,” the Warden said, surprised.
“The manuscript mentions a goblin who stole several pouches. Out of greed, most likely, he swallowed them all at once. And after a while, according to what’s written there, he began to swell up, and then he burst into pieces.”
“I see. So the Ant Power is treacherous indeed. It can make you strong, or it can kill you. That’s worth remembering. Go on.”
“Gladly, Warden. I also learned that a goblin who drank the Ant Power could defeat a troll single-handedly. Just imagine how many ordinary warriors he’d be worth. Of course, the Ant Power doesn’t grant immortality. But even one such goblin becomes a formidable force.”
“If all this is true, then why don’t the Bignoses use it now?”
“Because a thousand years ago, the Ant Power seemed to rob them of their reason. Greed and a mad desire to seize the whole forest very nearly destroyed them, and with them, the entire goblin tribe. There was a time when trolls held sway over almost every goblinum in our forest. We came within a hair’s breadth of destruction. Only then did the goblins come to their senses. United, they drove the trolls out. After that, it was decided to forget the Ant Power forever, so that nothing like it would ever happen again.”
“All of this is written in an ancient manuscript called the Oath Scroll. It was gathering dust on a shelf belonging to the Warden of my goblinum until I found it and took it.”
“Interesting. Perhaps I have such a manuscript myself, somewhere. Though that hardly matters now. You’ve told me everything already. But something else concerns me now. Does this mean that if I decide to conquer the whole Goblin Forest, I’m doomed to fail? Or maybe it would even end in the destruction of all goblins? Then why did you tell me about the Ant Power at all?” the Warden grumbled, displeased.
“Precisely because you are not a foolish goblin, as those wretched Bignoses were, and probably still are. I’m certain you won’t repeat their mistakes, and that you won’t rush into anything.”
“Besides, there is no great enemy now. I mean the trolls. Since the time of that great war, they haven’t dared to set foot in the Goblin Forest again. Perhaps they died out long ago in their swamps and mountains. So now is a very favorable time.”
At these words, the Counselor’s eyes gleamed with greed, and this did not escape the Warden’s notice.
“I see that you yourself can hardly wait to lord it over the goblinums of our forest. And yet you just advised me not to rush. Could all this be for the sake of revenge against your own Warden?”
“Oh, no. Revenge doesn’t concern me much. I think more about you, and I see that you are the one able to unite all the goblin clans under your rule. But that is exactly why there’s no need to rush.”
“I propose a different path. First, you must subdue your own clan. Invite all the Wardens to you. I believe that with the Ant Power and your gift of persuasion, they will quickly recognize you as their ruler. And as for those who prove stubborn, you’ll find something to do about them.”
“Once you become the ruler of all the Hermits, you’ll have the chance to gather a great army. Only then is it worth turning your gaze to the Bignoses. There’s no need to seize all their goblinums at once. What matters most is taking the anthills and the neighboring goblinum. That is the key to the whole forest.”
“I’ve already thought it all through carefully. With plenty of Ant Power at your disposal, you’ll subdue the remaining three Bignose goblinums without difficulty. Once you hold power over the second clan, there’s no need to push straight on westward. Let the remaining two clans believe you’ve stopped for good. Then they won’t unite, because they won’t see any threat.”
“You’ll have to be patient. But the waiting won’t be wasted. In that time, you’ll strengthen your hold over the conquered goblins, and your army will grow even larger.”
“Once the western clans have settled down completely, we’ll strike. We’ll need to move quickly toward the western edges of the forest along the Road of the Four Clans and seize the bridges. Only the bridges at first, to cut off the goblinums on the north bank from those on the south. That way, we won’t let the clans unite.”
“After that, everything is simple. Our warriors will march out from the Bignoses’ southern lands, where by then they’ll already be firmly established. They’ll begin seizing one goblinum after another, first in the southern part of the forest, and then they’ll cross the bridges and take the remaining goblinums in the north.”
“I’m certain you’ll generously offer the goblins the chance to submit of their own free will. Then nothing will change for them, except acknowledging your supreme rule. As for those who refuse to submit, they’ll have to be driven out of the forest. Let them go to the mountains or the swamps. But somehow, I suspect there won’t be many of those.”
“And so, once every Warden has sworn loyalty to you, and with them every goblin, you’ll become the greatest and most powerful goblin in the entire history of our tribe. And after that, who knows, perhaps you’ll wish to extend your rule beyond the Goblin Forest as well.”
The Counselor spoke of his schemes with great enthusiasm, and the Warden could see him practically come alive as he talked about it all.
That unassuming old man really isn’t so simple after all, Appo thought. His cunning mind conjures up great schemes. I was right to make him my Counselor, after all. With him, my wishes might become reality. And then they’ll stop mockingly calling us wild goblins. I’ll show them all who we truly are.
But I still need to be careful with Torul. He’s like some creature born of an evil spirit, and he’ll conceal his true intentions to the very end.
As he pondered this, the Warden stroked the two keys hanging from his neck. He still couldn’t decide what to do with the second key — hide it himself, or give it to someone else for safekeeping.
“You’ve truly interested me, Torul. But this will indeed take no small amount of patience. I don’t know if I’ll have enough of it once the anthills are in my hands. I hope that with your help, I’ll do everything right. Now, who did you mean by the lands beyond the forest?”
“To begin with, it could be the trolls, if they still exist. Trolls are very strong and could be used for heavy construction work and in the fields. That would free up even more goblins to be made into warriors. And after the trolls, perhaps it’s worth turning our attention to humans.”
“Humans? But they live far beyond the mountains, and nothing connects us to them. Except that sometimes they come into our forest and steal goblins to make slaves of them. Though I haven’t heard of anything like that lately.”
“You see, Warden, I don’t wish to contradict you. But perhaps you’re mistaken when you say that nothing connects us to humans. There is an old legend that claims that once, humans and goblins were…”
“All right, enough, Torul,” the Warden cut him off. “We’ll talk about humans another time. They don’t interest me for now. Let’s go inspect the fields instead and see how well our goblins are working.”
Once back in the goblinum, the Warden ordered Lukdun to be summoned. He did not keep him waiting, and soon was already stepping into the Warden’s house. As always, he nodded without saying a word and stood waiting for orders.
“What would you say to uniting all the Hermits under our rule?” Appo asked at once, not wanting to draw out the lead-up to such an unusual conversation.
As he spoke, he watched Lukdun’s face closely. An uneasy look would mean disagreement, perhaps even hidden protest. A smirk would suggest that Lukdun had no objection but didn’t believe in success. And an impassive face would mean agreement and readiness to act.
And that was exactly the face Lukdun wore now.
“I’m ready to carry out any order of yours, Warden. However, I must warn you: if they put up serious resistance, our forces may not be enough. Their goblinums lie close to one another, and they’ll be able to unite quickly.”
“Perhaps you’re right. But something has come into my possession that will give our warriors a strength strong enough to break any resistance. Still, I don’t think it will come to that. We are, after all, one clan.”
“For now, I want to speak with all the Wardens first. So go to their goblinums and tell them that Warden Appo is urgently calling a council on an important matter.”
Lukdun said nothing, only nodded, and left.
It seemed that nothing surprised this goblin of few words, nothing ever worried him, and nothing frightened him. What could be better in an ideal warrior? That was exactly why Appo had put him in command of all the warriors, and placed great hopes in him.
As for the Warden himself, he didn’t linger long in the house, and set off for the Iron-master. There he found not only the master himself but several other goblins as well, in the thick of their work. What the Warden was about to say to the master was not meant for other ears. So he halted the work and ordered everyone out of the workshop.
“I promised you a good ration and skauti. And I’m ready to keep that promise, but for some reason you won’t let me. Have you truly lost your taste for a good meal and a drink of our wonderful brew? I’m starting to think this is disrespect.”
“Not at all, Warden! Forgive me if I made you think that even for a moment. It isn’t so at all. My desire hasn’t faded — it’s only grown stronger. But skauti is a drink meant to be savored, and that takes time. If I made time for skauti now, I’d lose that time from my work and fail you, since you ordered the work done as quickly as possible. That I cannot allow,” the Iron-master answered anxiously.
“How many cages are ready so far?”
“Two.”
“That’s enough for now. And how many swords?”
“Enough for a few more companies,” the master answered proudly. It was plain that he was very pleased with his work.
“You’ve worked well. You may rest a little. I can see you’re a fine, loyal goblin who understands that nothing matters more than a Warden’s orders. And now I’m fully convinced that I was right to choose you.”
“To carry out any order of yours, I’m ready to work day and night. You can rely on me,” the master said, growing even more flustered at such unexpected praise.
“No, no. I’m not talking about work right now. I’ve decided to leave this key in your keeping. I believe you recognize it.”
The Warden showed him the key to the casket.
“Just don’t carry it around with you. You’ll lose it. Better to hide it somewhere. You could even leave it right here in the workshop. After all, they say: if you want to hide something, put it out in plain sight. And you’ve got so many little iron things lying about here that no one will give the key a second look. Besides, who’d have any use for a plain key anyway? No one — except whoever knows what it opens.”
The Warden paused and looked the master steadily in the eye.
“So if you tell anyone about it, you’ll lose more than just your tongue.”
Appo’s icy stare froze the Iron-master where he stood.
“I won’t tell anyone anything, and I won’t give up this secret even under torture. I won’t fail you,” he answered quickly, and for some reason in a whisper.
“Good. And remember: you’re to give the key only to the goblin who tells you what it opens. Because that can only be learned from me. Which means he’ll be the one I sent.”
The Warden handed over the key and headed for the door. “Already on the threshold, he practically ordered the master to go get skauti for himself and spend the rest of the day enjoying a well-earned rest.”
For a while, the Iron-master stood as though turned to stone. Then, as if waking, he began to think over where best to hide the key. He had recognized it at once, and was quite astonished at how seriously the Warden treated the thing. After all, it was only the key to the casket, not to a cellar filled to the brim with mutton.
Still, the master took the task with all seriousness. What’s more, he felt proud that he in particular had been entrusted with such a secret. Scratching the back of his bald head with a hand roughened by the hammer, the master finally found a spot. He placed the key among the other keys that had piled up in the workshop over long years of making locks.
No one will ever notice it here, he thought, pleased with his own cleverness.
For the next two days, the Warden waited anxiously for Lukdun’s return. He wasn’t entirely certain that all the Wardens would agree to come to his backwater goblinum. And yet that was exactly what the whole plan depended on — gathering them here and forcing them to submit.
Away from their own homes, they wouldn’t feel as confident, and so would show more good sense. Then there’d be no need to seize their goblinums by force, which Appo did not want at all. After a violent conquest, it would be impossible to quickly gather loyal warriors. It was quite another matter if their own Warden announced the submission. By old goblin tradition, his word was law for the entire goblinum.
As for anyone who proved stubborn regardless, he would remain here forever. It was for just such a case that the Iron-master had been ordered to make the cages. Though perhaps a far worse fate than imprisonment awaited an unyielding Warden.
At last Lukdun returned. He reported that the Wardens of all three goblinums had accepted the invitation and promised to arrive soon.
This news delighted Appo tremendously. His anxiety vanished at once.
The prey is coming to the hunter on its own. All that will be left is to say the right words and show my strength.